Run for Cover
by The Last Battlecry
Summary: Spartan 117 was a man of action. When he's forced into 'retirement' by the UNSC, he meets a young woman who believes that she can find the man buried within the soldier. Whether she succeeds is up to him.


**Hi everyone! This is my first fic and I truly hope that you all enjoy it, because I had fun writing it. This is also my first Halo fic that I'm doing myself, and it'll be dark. Very, very dark.**

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" _You know my name, not my story. You've heard what I've done, not what I've been through. If you were in my shoes, you'd fall on the first step."_

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Most things in life were one thing or the other. Good or evil. Light or Dark. Fate or coincidence. The one thing that was certain though, was that war was evil. Nothing, but pure evil. It took people from their homes and families; forced them to live through horror of unimaginable proportions. It destroyed families and brought cities crumbling to the ground. And now it glassed worlds.

Having lived on Earth for the majority of her life, she had the fortune of never seeing a glassed planet. But she had seen pictures. Everyone had at one point or another seen a picture. The Covenant nearly succeeded in their campaign to wipe out Humanity, but now they have forged an uneasy alliance with the Sanghelli because they came to their aide while fighting the Flood. The war took her father from her, and with his death, her remaining family tore itself apart. She found forgiveness though. Humans have done similar things to each other in the past. While she may not like the Sanghelli, she could accept that the Alliance was in everyone's favor.

So, she thought that the Alliance was good. A little ironic given the history between the different races, but good none the less.

But the moving van and two Warthogs she had seen drive by her house earlier wasn't something that she could place yet. All she knew was that she was happy to have a neighbor that was relatively close by, even if she was wary. She knew nothing of the person, or people, that were moving in. So she decided to take her dog for a walk to try and meet her new neighbor. If they were there, then they could talk. If they weren't, then there was always tomorrow.

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Katlynn panted softly in the crisp misty morning air. She jogged down the worn pavement, her mind tranquil as she moved. This was why she liked this so much. It was mind-numbing; no thoughts were needed for the actions. It gave the perfect opportunity to sort out her thoughts or to clear her mind and just enjoy the world around her.

She smiled when she jogged into a heavily wooded area. The air got noticeably cooler, and the early morning sun passed through the mist giving everything an ethereal look. She loved it. The little things like this are why she was glad that she was alive. They lessened the dull ache in her chest just enough that she felt like she had a chance to live again.

She continued on in this manner until the trees thinned and gave way to lush farm land and open fields. Rows of different crops resided on one side of the road; the other was fenced off and filled with all sorts of animals; like sheep, cattle, and horses. The animals were grazing peacefully, most ignoring her as she jogged by while a few of the horses raised their head curiously. She didn't pause to look at them though; her eyes were drawn further down the road to the old farmhouse resting on top of the hill.

She noticed that the van was still there, as were the two Warthogs. She noticed that one of them looked strange though. It looked like a weird cross between a SUV and a Warthog. And it was friggin' massive. She could barely see through the window. After studying the vehicles, she made her way up the steps of the porch. She heard voices inside and hesitated, hand poised to knock. She didn't know these people. And they were clearly male.

Her lips thinned as she gathered her courage.

She knocked on the door.

The voices inside suddenly cut off and it was then that Katlynn thought that she might have made a deadly mistake. Solid heavy footsteps made their way to the door and she took a step back in surprise when the door opened. A massive tank of a man covered in scars and burns was standing in front of her. She barely even came to the bottom his chest! It was moments like these when she cursed her five foot two inch height.

She stared a moment with a gaping mouth before she snapped it shut with a click. The man towering over her stared down at her with cold blue eyes and thick, corded, scar-covered arms folded across his burly chest.

"Um… hi?" She said, and immediately mentally smacked herself in the head. If you sounded confident and you looked confident, people won't be as keen to try to use you for their own gain.

A thick brown eyebrow rose slightly. She smiled nervously and continued before she lost what was left her of rapidly diminishing reserves of courage.

"I'm Katlynn. I live a few miles down the road. Are you the one moving in?"

His expression never changed, but his eyes narrowed slightly. The expression of indifference was beginning to unnerve her a little.

"… Yes," he finally answered. She nearly died right then and there. Good god, his _voice_. It was deep and gravelly, it sounded like he was growling out his words and she found that attractive. Really, _really_ attractive.

"I knew the former occupants of the home. I just wanted to meet my new neighbor and to see if you wanted any help settling in…." Her voice dwindled off towards the end as she lost her confidence by being stared down by a giant. She was pretty sure that if he wanted to he could palm her head with ease… and then crush it.

He remained unmoving until his head twitched backwards and he slowly nodded before standing back to allow her to slip through. She flicked her eyes up, way up, to look into his as she passed, and just as quickly flicked them back down. When she was fully in the parlor, she took a deep breath through her nose. It still smelled the same.

The living tank brushed past her and walked into that kitchen, which was just off to the right of the parlor, fully expecting her to follow. She hovered in the doorway, not really sure how welcome she was and so she could observe the others in the room from a safe distance. Three other men were in the room, two were clearly guards, while the other was clearly a superior officer. The guards wore the thin body armor of the Marines and carried UNSC assault rifles, both eyed her warily. The man sitting at the table wore a crisp and clean white suit, metals decorating his chest. He looked to be an older man, his face was wrinkled and line with age, but his eyes held a youthful fierceness in them that rivaled his appearance.

She smiled nervously again, pushing a loose strained of her raven locks behind her ear.

The older man stood and held out his hand. "You're the young lady who lives down the street, correct?" He questioned.

"Yes sir," she replied. Not everyone got such a fancy white suit. He was important somehow. "My name's Katlynn Morgan."

She straightened her spine and met his gaze dead on as she shook his hand.

"Admiral Hood," he gave back. Ha, she was right.

"An honor, sir."

Hood smiled and motioned to the living tank, "This is John, he's the one moving in.

She noticed how he hesitated on the name, like he wanted to say something else.

Katlynn turned toward the man mentioned. She took a breath to calm herself before she held out her hand. He observed her through hooded eyes before reaching out and gently grasping her hand. She marveled at the differences she could feel and see. His hand was rougher than any other she had felt and dwarfed hers, completely and utterly. The roughness made her hands, which were also covered in calluses, seem soft in comparison. The skin was completely different too. Hers was a light mocha that she got from her father and from being out in the sun most days. And his was pale, extremely pale, like he didn't get out in the sun often enough.

He said nothing when he pulled away. She looked around the room noticing the pictures still hanging on the walls. None were of her thankfully, but she felt her throat close when she saw her parents smiling and happy in the frame above the stove. She quickly looked away and back to the two men, ignoring the guards by the walls.

She rocked on her heels and stuck her hands in the pockets of her light jacket, puffing out a breath. An awkward silence settled over the room, making the occupants uncomfortable. Katlynn couldn't tell about John though, his face was still impassive.

"So…," she began haltingly, "what brings you all the way to the middle of nowhere?"

"John needs a nice quiet place to rest up from the war. We figured this would be the best fit."

She snorted a little. "You can't get much quieter than this. Nothing really happens around here. Just… farming."

John made a small noise in the back of his throat and Admiral Hood sighed and rubbed the back of his neck. Katlynn had a feeling that things were about to get interesting around her small town.

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 **So, really hope you guys enjoyed this! Please leave a review! Or PM me, any suggestions for improvement is welcome!**


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